They cannot access shelters, which are already overcrowded, and have nowhere to protect themselves from IDF bombs. A parish has opened its doors to them, but every day dozens of people ask for help. There are more than 160,000 immigrants in Lebanon, 65% of whom are women, but the number may be much higher. The (until now vain) repatriation promises of the Philippine government.
Beirut () – Among the folds (or sores) of the war that Israel has launched in Lebanon against Hezbollah, but which ends up affecting the entire population, including Christians, a drama unfolds, relegated to the margins of the news and ignored by governments and the international community: immigrant workers, especially those from Asian and African countries, who have lived for a long time in the Land of Cedars and today find themselves under the rain of bombs from the army of the Jewish State (FDI) without shelters or safe prospects for repatriation. The critical situation has been confirmed in these hours by groups of immigrants who face successive attacks by fighters with the Star of David in streets and squares, unable to access the shelters that have already been taken over by the internally displaced, more than 120,000 according to official figures, but they could reach a million.
In the chaos in which Lebanon finds itself, migrant workers from Ethiopia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Sudan have abandoned the perennial cone of shadow in which they live to escape the bombings. One of those that has tried to offer them refuge and has opened its doors to all is the parish of Saint Joseph in Beirut, run by the Jesuits, where exhausted and hungry women crowd around a table while others wait for a meal, with their eyes and ears open to Israeli drones and missiles.
New ones arrive every day, dozens, if not hundreds, from southern Lebanon, from the eastern sectors and from the southern outskirts of the capital, an area that is considered a stronghold of the militiamen of the pro-Iranian Party of God and, therefore, attacked with greater intensity. “The church, which was once a daytime shelter for migrants, has become a nighttime reception center since the Israeli airstrikes began,” Brother Michael Petro of the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) tells al-Monitor. .
“A family from our church came and asked to stay. We told them yes, and the next morning 30 more people arrived, and then another 50,” the American missionary continues. “The first day we called all the shelters in the country. We couldn’t find a place, either because they were full or because they told us they didn’t accept immigrants.” However, observes Lebanese activist Dea Hage Chahine, immigrants also need help. “They are invisible, like third-class citizens,” she adds, and explains that “immigrant workers often do not even have passports or rights.”
Kumiri Parara, a 48-year-old Sri Lankan woman, arrived a few days ago with her 12-year-old son, fleeing Sidon, in the south, which is under bombardment. The woman has lived in Lebanon for 20 years and was married to a Palestinian, then divorced and found work as a domestic worker. It is a common job among immigrant women, many of whom come from the island to earn enough money to support family and relatives who have remained in their homeland. Kumiri says her employers also escaped, but she has no news from them.
According to 2023 data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), there are more than 160,000 migrants in Lebanon, 65% of whom are women. In reality, the number could be much higher, although many are clandestine because they do not have documents, or are in a situation of legal limbo that would imply their expulsion if they were identified. Furthermore, the vast majority are found in the Country of Cedars within the framework of what is called the “kafala” system, a sponsorship system that regulates the presence of foreign workers but which gives rise to numerous abuses and violations of human rights. by the “bosses”.
One of the few voices that wanted to address the issue of the condition and the emergency situation in which they find themselves was the NGO Migrant International, which organized an online meeting last September 29 aimed primarily at the Filipino community in Lebanon. There are more than 11,000 people who, for days, have been waiting to return to their country as promised by the Manila government, but who are still in a limbo situation without being able to escape. The evacuation should have started immediately after the feared ground invasion by the Israeli army, but in practice it has not yet been resolved.
During the conference, workers expressed frustration over what they see as a slow response from the Philippine government. Joanna Concepción, president of Migrante Internacional, pointed out that there is no talk of “the difficulties or struggles that our workers are facing, which is why they hesitate or cannot return to their country, nor does she know the magnitude of the situation.” Rachel Kiocho, a hairstylist in Dahieh, described an alarming situation in an area that was bombed and her employer suddenly fled, abandoning her and others. “It’s a fairly safe area, so I feel calm – she explains – but I don’t know how long it can last, because news is circulating of an imminent ground attack.” “I ask you to save us and help us. “Many of us – he added – want to return home, but we have difficulties with the procedures.”
Christine Lao, another migrant, said the ongoing conflict has created a frightening atmosphere for those still in Lebanon. “After being here for so long, we never thought we would return home, but now it has become a matter of life and death. We can’t delay any longer. We have a child with us who keeps asking ‘are we going to die when the bombings happen?'” The woman then shared her frustrating experience with the repatriation process and explained that the embassy simply sent links to fill out the forms, but They responded that they had to wait 20 days to receive a response. In reality, more than a month has passed without any progress. The delay would be due to their status as undocumented workers (TNT), but Lao wonders how this is possible. get answers (or correspondence) if the immigration office is closed due to the war. According to the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), the repatriation of more than a dozen Filipinos in Lebanon (a minimal number) affected by the conflict. It has been rescheduled for October 3, when the return to his country was scheduled for September 26.
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